8th Annual OC Yoga Fest Returns to Huntington Beach August 16-17, 2025

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A Weekend of Wellness, Community, and Oceanfront Fun – Now with Expanded Family, First Responder, and Charity Programming

Huntington Beach, CA — July 22, 2025 – The sun-soaked shores of Surf City will once again host thousands for the 8th Annual OC Yoga Fest on August 16th and 17th, 2025. This vibrant, all-ages wellness weekend transforms the Huntington Beach Pier Plaza & Beach into a holistic hub of transformation, music, movement, and a mindful community – all with a unique SoCal spirit.

Festival Highlights:
FREE Access: General admission, all talks, music concerts, vendor village, and beach games are free to attend, both days from 9am–6pm. For maximum wellness, purchase a ticket for unlimited beach classes (four 90-min sessions per day) led by top OC yoga, breathwork, and movement instructors.

World-Class Wellness Experiences:

  • Unlimited yoga, tai chi, sound healing, meditation, and biohacking zone plus talks from 9am-6pm. Talent lineup available at https://ocyogafest.com/.
  • Healing Pavilion on the sand featuring integrative healing modalities, open to all.
  • The “Limitless Longevity” area features hands-on demos and top brands for biohacking, recovery, and holistic health including an ice bath!

Saturday Classes and Entertainment:
Classes get started Saturday morning with Yogi Gabriel teaching a Kundalini class, and Newton Campbell with a Mindful Vinyasa Flow. Hannah Bararon will teach breathwork. Talks include “Chakras & Kundalini” by Yogiraj Utkarsh Sanjanwala, and “Ayurveda & Vedic Astrology” from world famous yogi Mas Vidal. Music on Saturday includes acoustic rocker Savannah Love, and folk singer Anna May.

Sunday Classes and Entertainment:
Sunday classes include movement with Sophia Saenz, Vinyasa Flow with Natalie Makardish, Acro-Yoga with Jack McKee & Alisa Roe, a wellness talk with Greg Wolfe, and a yoga for recovery talk from expert and author Bryan Hyman. Music on Sunday includes Live Looping from Freddie LB and the Doggies, folksinger Christopher Hawley, and Kirtan with the Shakti Bhakti Kirtan Troupe.

NEW Family Features:
A Kids Zone in the upper parking lot with free wellness classes and a bounce house for nonstop fun. Kids 12 and under are always free!
Youth & Community Programs:

  • Free tickets for teens affiliated with UPLIFT Yoga
  • Daily open yoga class dedicated to Fire Fighters and all First Responders
  • Morning “Fun Run” along the boardwalk

Wellness & Sport:

  • BeachCity Sports hosts a free, all-weekend volleyball tournament and beach games for every level.
  • Bike and surfboard rentals beside the stage at ZACKS shop—ride or catch a wave between classes.

Shopping & Samples:
70+ mindful vendors in the Zen Marketplace—many with complimentary snacks and samples, plus wellness brands offering expert advice.

VIP Experience:

  • Shaded VIP Lounge by SHIBUMI, stocked with refreshing drinks donated by sponsor partners and a selection of free snacks
  • Beach bar with a wine sponsor (TBA) and CuentaCuentos Mezcal
  • VIP after-party (location TBA) for Media, Sponsors, VIP Guests, Biohacking brands, and local wellness leaders

Live Music & Community:

  • Main stage is a semi-truck foldout located just right of the pier with grass and stadium seating—enjoy SoCal bands all weekend.
  • Sunday Kirtan set to close the fest (4:30–6pm), followed by a sunset drum circle (6–8pm).
  • Music talent lineup available at https://ocyogafest.com.

Pet-Friendly: Leashed pets welcome!

Charity & Partnerships:
Nearly all programming partners with local charities, nonprofits, or youth organizations. Partner organizations include: UPLIFT Yoga, Yoga for First Responders, Run Surf City, SoCal Kids Club, and Beach City Sports.

Ticketing:
Most of the event is open and free; wristbands ($44+) grant unlimited class access for a single day or the full weekend. Kids 12 and under always attend free, and special groups receive community passes. Tickets are available at https://www.sweatpals.com/event/oc-yoga-festival.

Media & Sponsor Info:
Media, local wellness brands, and in-kind and monetary sponsors can inquire about participation, VIP lounge and gift bag placement, or on-site tickets for special groups.

Join Us:
OC Yoga Fest 2025 is a celebration of inclusivity, community wellness, and oceanfront fun for everybody. Whether you come to move, meditate, listen, play, or just enjoy the beautiful SoCal beach vibes, all are welcome.

Visit: https://ocyogafest.com for schedule updates, VIP and wellness class passes, volunteer and vendor info, and more.

Bhakti Fest Welcomes Thousands for a Transformational Event September 27-29 in Joshua Tree, California

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Joshua Tree, CA – April 29, 2024 – Bhakti Fest, Southern California’s popular yoga and conscious music festival, will return to the beautiful Joshua Lake & Campground on September 27-29, 2024.

This pioneering gathering will be celebrating its 13th anniversary. Bhakti Fest is a beacon for spiritual seekers worldwide, best known for nonstop music, yoga classes, breathwork and sound healing sessions, vegetarian cuisine, healing bodywork, wisdom talks, conscious community, and transformation. With the fantastic success of last year’s first post-COVID festival, the Bhakti Fest team is excited to welcome its fans back in 2024.

Festival producer Bella Silberfein notes, “With last year’s incredible festival that exceeded all our expectations, we are thrilled to be back with a festival in Joshua Tree in 2024. We look forward to bringing our entire Bhakti family together again. This year, we are focused on further amplifying voices from all communities, highlighting workshops on regeneration, taking care of our planet, and creating space for connection and creativity to blossom. Change starts at a grassroots level, and we are passionate about making space for people to collaborate.”

The festival returns with all-star yoga instructors, including Seane Corn, Dianne Bondy, Shiva Rea, Janet Stone, Andrew Sealy, Susanna Barkataki, Amanda Giacomini, Kia Miller, Natalie Valle, Kumi Yogini, Govind Das, Edward Williams, Sonic Devas, Kristin Olson, Newton Campbell, Dharma Shakti and local favorites, Cedar and Sage Wellness’s Tobi Gullian and Sabrina Bennett. From those who have never stepped foot on a yoga mat to those who don’t travel without one, all student levels are welcome and encouraged to attend.

A curator of sacred sound, Bhakti Fest will host non-stop conscious music and chant across various musical genres, including blues, rock, pop, gospel, traditional, and hip-hop. Headliners include Grammy nominee Krishna Das and MC YOGI. This year’s musicians include favorites such as Deya Dova, Marieme, Ajeet, Radhika Das, Kr3ture, Vijay Krsna, Nikunja, Govind Das and Jacqueline Michelle, Radhika Vekaria, Amritakripa, Fantuzzi, Saeed Younan, Jayadeva Dasa, Nina Rao, Shamiran, Allison Eaton, Sharanam, Kamini Natarajan and more.

Bhakti Fest provides participants the unique opportunity to interact with and learn from some of the greatest luminaries of our time. Speakers include Jai Dev, Indy Rishi Singh (and the Cosmic Labyrinth), Tommy Rosen, Harpinder Kaur Mann, Sita Devi Dasi, Scott Blossom, Troy Casey, Ramana, Abudu Nininger, Siva Mohan, Diana Cantú-Reyna, Haridass Kaur Khalsa, Zoe Kors and more. In the festival’s tradition, Bhakti Fest will be dedicated to beloved mentor and friend Baba Ram Das.

The family festival is complete with a Kids’ Village! In the cool shade, fun, physical, creative, musical, and conscious activities provide an opportunity to enjoy time together. Family bundles are available to encourage bringing the kiddos to experience the magic.

Bhaktis will feast on various raw, vegan, and vegetarian food and beverage options. There is an extensive marketplace with eco-friendly, sustainable vendors offering clothing, devotional art, musical instruments, CDs, crafts, jewelry, and more.

Accommodations on-site include glamping, camping, and RV parking. Several hotels within a few miles of the campground offer discounts for attendees.

With a world-class lineup of musicians and yoga instructors, conscious workshops, and artisan vendors, Bhakti Fest offers the most heart-opening, consciousness-raising experience of any festival today. Attendees describe the festival as “immersed in the greatest conscious party you have ever experienced, filled with music, yoga, dancing, love, light, and heart-centered community.”

Tickets for Bhakti Fest 2024 are available here. The non-profit festival donates a percentage of its funds to charities and other nonprofit groups that provide food, education, and environmental beautification programs worldwide. These include Food for Life Vrindavan, Love Serve Remember Foundation, Ramana’s Garden, Share Your Care, and the Seva Foundation. Senior, local, student, and military discounts are all available to make the event as accessible as possible for attendees of all ages.

DisclosureFest™ and Fade to Black Announce Lineup for the Mass Meditation Initiative: A Mindful Music, Yoga, Healing Arts, and Vegan Festival Taking Place Summer Solstice Weekend, June 21-23 at Castaic Lake Lagoon

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Los Angeles, CA – April 30, 2024 – DisclosureFest and Fade to Black will host the Mass Meditation Initiative on Summer Solstice Weekend, Friday, June 21- Sunday, June 23, 2024. This event has been the 9th Mass Meditation Initiative festival since 2017, following several events in SoCal, Washington DC, and Las Vegas. The event brings top electronic, spiritual, and jam music artists; conscious speakers and workshops on health, wellness, the environment, and humanitarian topics; yoga classes, sound baths, and an art walk featuring world-renowned visionary artists; vegan plant-based foods; and a children’s space offering a multitude of activities throughout the weekend.
The festival will kick off on Friday, June 21, at 10:00 AM, and yoga classes start as early as 7:00 AM on Saturday and Sunday. So, plan on arriving early to get grounded, stretch, and prepare for fully immersive days at the Castaic Lake Lagoon (32132 Castaic Lake Dr., Castaic, CA 91384), at the Interstate 5 exit at Hughes Lake Road, just 41 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles.

The Mass Meditation is scheduled for 2:22 PM Pacific Daylight Time on Friday, June 21, and Saturday, June 22, and will be live-streamed at https://disclosurefest.org/live/. During the mass meditation, everyone on site, expected to be around 10,000 people, will meditate with an online global audience. This year’s meditation focuses collective energy on water and its importance in sustaining life, supporting global healing, and enabling change for humanity and the planet.

Mass meditation offers numerous benefits, both for individuals and society as a whole. When large groups gather to meditate simultaneously, they create a powerful collective energy that can positively impact the surrounding environment. Scientific studies have shown that mass meditation can lower crime rates, reduce stress levels, and even decrease incidents of conflict around the world. This phenomenon is attributed to synchronizing brainwave patterns among participants, leading to a state of coherence and harmony.

Additionally, mass meditation fosters a sense of community and interconnectedness, promoting empathy and understanding among individuals. Our organization, DisclosureFest Foundation, has been widely recognized by prestigious publications such as the Smithsonian and Newsweek for its impact on global change through its Mass Meditation Initiative. As more research delves into the science behind meditation and its collective effects, its potential for fostering peace and well-being on a global scale becomes increasingly evident.

Attendees are invited to immerse themselves in live music at three music stages. Performers include Rising Appalachia, Deya Dova, Porangui, Mike Love, Shaman’s Dream, and Sonic Devas. Premier DJs include Marques Wyatt, DJ Dan, Doc Martin, and more. Further music details are here.

Eight workshop tents will host transformative sessions, with speakers including Bashar, Billy Carson, 19Keys, Jimmy Church, Julia Cannon, Brad Olsen, Zat Baraka, Laura Eisenhower, Michael Tellinger, and more, who are set to inspire with their profound insights and teachings. Conscious workshops include lessons in plant-based food preparation, ecstatic dance, ayurveda, essential oils, herbalism, sacred geometry, past life regressions, light alchemy, singing, meditation and visualization practices, Siddha healing, and quantum third eye activations. The complete list of speakers and workshop leaders is here.

This year, the DisclosureFest Foundation introduces its Integration Series Workshops. These two-day workshops, held on Saturday and Sunday, are designed to transform attendees, and facilitate the integration of newfound knowledge.

Dozens of yoga classes will be offered, offering different modalities, such as tantra, acro, kundalini, hatha, and Naam, for all levels of participation. Children will enjoy a weekend of workshops, including yoga, meditation, tribal body painting, singing with movement, sacred geometry drawing, vegan plant-based superfoods, and more. Festival attendees may also participate in opening and closing ceremonies, cacao ceremonies, drum circles, goddess circles, and an interactive tea house.

Some of Los Angeles’ finest plant-based restaurants will serve highly vibration, nutrition-dense vegan cuisines, desserts, juices, smoothies, and kombucha beverages. Health and wellness products and services will also add to this fantastic experiential weekend, which is the true essence of DisclosureFest™.

One-day passes start at $77.00, with additional options for complete weekend passes, camping, and parking. For more information on pricing and the festival program, please visit www.DisclosureFest.org to get tickets, sign up for the live stream, and discover this year’s lineup of live performances, artists, speakers, yoga classes, workshops, sound healings, vegan foods, partners, and sponsors that will co-create another magical weekend of activation.

About The DisclosureFest™ Foundation
The DisclosureFest™ Foundation is a multicultural initiative and community-based nonprofit platform. Our Foundation unites heart-centered, like-minded people, donors, and sponsors working to raise consciousness, provide education on health and wellness, and create awareness of global, environmental, and humanitarian initiatives through ongoing monthly volunteer-based events and programs.

Bhakti Fest, a Transformational Event September 15-17 in Joshua Tree, California, Announces New Lineup Additions

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Joshua Tree, CA – June 22, 2023 – Bhakti Fest, Southern California’s popular yoga and spiritual music festival, is excited to announce several additions to the talent lineup of their 2023 edition at the beautiful Joshua Lake & Campground over the weekend of September 15-17.

Newly announced yoga teachers include superstar Seane Corn, plus Raghunath Das, Hemalayaa & DTO, Devasonic, Natalie Valle, and Carmen Curtis from ARIEL Yoga. Other all-star yoga instructors include Yogrishi Vishvketu, Shiva Rea, Kia Miller, Andrew Sealy, Tejal Patel, Tommy Rosen, Allison Eaton, Govind Das & Jacqueline Michelle, Harpinder Kaur Mann, MC Yogi & Amanda Giacomini, and local favorite, Urban Yoga’s Kristin Olson. From those who have never stepped foot on a yoga mat to those who don’t travel without one, all student levels are welcome and encouraged to attend.

A curator of sacred sound, Bhakti Fest will host non-stop Kirtan and chant, along with other conscious music, across various musical genres, including blues, rock, pop, gospel, traditional, and hip-hop. New music lineup additions include Ayla Nereo, Amritakripa, Satsang, Radhika Das, Fantuzzi, and Egeman Sanli. 2023 headliners include transformational music legend Michael Franti, and Grammy nominees Pato Banton, Krishna Das, and MC YOGI. This year’s musicians also include favorites such as Desert Dwellers, Snow Raven, Sol Rising, DJ Drez & Marti Nikko, David Starfire, Raghunath Das, The Hanuman Project, Nina Rao, Gina Sala, Karnamrita Dasi, and more.

Bhakti Fest provides participants with the unique opportunity to interact and learn from some of the greatest luminaries of our time. New workshop leaders include Sita Devi Dasi and Paul Heussenstam. Other speakers include Michael Brian Baker, Radhanath Swami, Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswatiji, Jai Dev Singh, Nidhi Pandya, Indy Singh, Scott Blossom, Reginald Hubbard, Zoe Kors, and Tejal Patel.

Bhakti Fest is a pioneering gathering known for non-stop yoga, kirtan and other spiritual and conscious music, meditation, sound healing, vegetarian cuisine, therapeutic bodywork, spiritual study, conscious community, and transformation that continues to serve as a beacon for spiritual seekers from around the world. After a COVID-driven break since 2019, the festival is excited to welcome its fans home.

Festival producer Bella Silberfein notes, “We are so thrilled to be collaborating with such an amazing lineup of talent for the return of Bhakti Fest this year. It is amazing to see how excited the community is for it to be back and to gather again after the past few years.”

No family festival is complete without a Kids’ Village! In the cool shade, fun, physical, creative, musical, and conscious activities allow parents and children to enjoy time together.

Bhaktis will feast on various raw, vegan, and vegetarian food and beverage options. There is an extensive marketplace with eco-friendly, sustainable vendors offering clothing, devotional art, musical instruments, CDs, crafts, jewelry, and more.

Accommodations onsite include glamping, camping, and RV parking. There are also several hotels within a few miles of the campground that offer discounts for attendees.

With a world-class lineup of musicians and yoga instructors, conscious workshops, and artisan vendors, Bhakti Fest offers the most heart-opening, consciousness-raising experience of any festival today. Attendees describe the festival as “immersed in the greatest conscious party you have ever experienced, filled with music, yoga, dancing, love, light, and heart-centered community.”

Tickets for Bhakti Fest 2023 are available here. The non-profit festival donates a percentage of its funds to charities and other nonprofit groups that provide food, education, and environmental beautification programs worldwide. These include Food for Life Vrindavan, Love Serve Remember Foundation, Ramana’s Garden, Share Your Care, and the Seva Foundation.

Music Legend Michael Franti Headlines Bhakti Fest, a Transformational Event September 15-17 in Joshua Tree, California

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Photo of Michael FrantiJoshua Tree, CA – April 5, 2023 – Bhakti Fest, Southern California’s popular yoga and spiritual music festival, is excited to announce a new headliner for their 2023 edition – socially conscious music legend Michael Franti will appear in a rare solo performance at the event at the beautiful Joshua Lake & Campground over the weekend of September 15-17.

Franti has been a regular performer at transformational festivals in his native California and beyond since forming his band Michael Franti & Spearhead in 1994. He is the creator and lead vocalist of his current independent project, Michael Franti & Spearhead, a band that blends hip-hop with various other styles, including funk, reggae, jazz, folk, and rock. He is also an outspoken supporter of a wide spectrum of peace and social justice issues.

One of the rare artists to use the powerful medium of music to explore social and political issues, Michael Franti has proved to be a musician with a moral conscience. This gifted spoken word artist, composer, poet, and political activist began his musical career with the industrial punk/spoken word band, The Beatnigs. He later formed the American industrial hip-hop band, The Disposable Heroes of Hiphoprisy, a fiery group whose music explored political themes. Seeking further improvement and innovation, Franti founded Spearhead. He pushed boundaries with his music and became pivotal in hip-hop’s renaissance, drawing from soul-driven beats and funk rhythms. With Spearhead, he also explored new ideas and set on to a more provocative tone and style. Their debut album, Home, received critical acclaim. Widely regarded as a master of contemporary protest music, Franti is an innovative songwriter whose skillful songwriting abilities successfully blend rock, hip hop, punk, rock, and jazz.

Throughout his multi-decade career with Spearhead, Franti has earned threeBillboard No. 1’s with triumphantly hopeful hits “Sound of Sunshine,” “Say Hey (I Love You)” and “I Got You,” as well as six Top 30 Hot AC singles, 10 Top 25 AAA Singles and three Billboard Top 5 Rock Albums. Spearhead’s 12th studio album Follow Your Heart, released in June 2022 and debuted at No. 2 on the iTunes Pop Chart behind Harry Styles.

Franti resides in Bali when he is not on tour and owns Soulshine Bali, a 32-room top-rated boutique hotel located in Ubud, Bali that focuses on joy through wellness and music, offering unique retreat opportunities and accommodations, along with special events and celebrations. Soulshine Bali continues to expand and grow with recent renovations, including a second restaurant, day club, panoramic yoga shala, and a new spa. For more information, visit soulshinebali.com.

In January 2019, Franti released his self-directed documentary Stay Human, which won an array of awards at film festivals worldwide and influenced his writing for his album Stay Human Vol II (Thirty Tigers), which debuted at No. 1 on both the Americana and Independent Album charts and received critical acclaim from USA Today, Billboard, Associated Press, and Paste.

Bhakti Fest is a pioneering gathering known for non-stop yoga, kirtan and other spiritual and conscious music, meditation, sound healing, vegetarian cuisine, therapeutic bodywork, spiritual study, conscious community, and transformation that continues to serve as a beacon for spiritual seekers from around the world. After a COVID-driven break since 2019, the festival is excited to welcome its fans home.

Festival producer Bella Silberfein notes, “having Michael Franti appear at a Bhakti Fest event has been a goal of ours since we started in 2009. We are so thrilled he’s headlining our first festival post-COVID and are looking forward to integrating his vibe and fans into our festival.”

The festival returns with all-star yoga instructors, including Yogrishi Vishvketu, Shiva Rea, Kia Miller, Andrew Sealy, Carmen Curtis, Tejal Patel, Tommy Rosen, Govind Das & Jacqueline, Harpinder Kaur Mann, Michael Brian Baker, MC Yogi, Amanda Giacomini, and local favorite, Urban Yoga’s Kristin Olson. From those who have never stepped foot on a yoga mat to those who don’t travel without one, all student levels are welcome and encouraged to attend.

A curator of sacred sound, Bhakti Fest will host non-stop Kirtan and chant, along with other conscious music, across various musical genres, including blues, rock, pop, gospel, traditional, and hip-hop. In addition to Franti, headliners include Grammy nominees Pato Banton, Krishna Das, and MC YOGI. This year’s musicians also include favorites such as Desert Dwellers, Snow Raven, Sol Rising, Kirtaniyas, Satsang, DJ Drez & Marti Nikko, David Starfire, Raghunath, Hanuman Project, Nina Rao, Radhika Das, Gina Sala, Karnamrita, and many more.

Bhakti Fest provides participants the unique opportunity to interact and learn from some of the greatest luminaries of our time. Speakers include Radhanath Swami, Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswatiji, Jai Devi Singh, Nidhi Pandya, Indy Rishi, Scott Blossom, Reginald Hubbard, Zoe Kors, and Tejal Patel. As always, Bhakti Fest will screen digital Satsang with the legendary, dearly departed Ram Dass, whose book Be Here Now helped bring Eastern philosophy west in the 1970s.

No family festival is complete without a Kids’ Village! In the cool shade, fun, physical, creative, musical, and conscious activities provide an opportunity for parents and children to enjoy time together.

Bhaktis will feast on various raw, vegan, and vegetarian food and beverage options. There is an extensive marketplace with eco-friendly, sustainable vendors offering clothing, devotional art, musical instruments, CDs, crafts, jewelry, and more.

Accommodations onsite include glamping, camping, and RV parking. There are also several hotels within a few miles of the campground that offer discounts for attendees.

With a world-class lineup of musicians and yoga instructors, conscious workshops, and artisan vendors, Bhakti Fest offers the most heart-opening, consciousness -raising experience of any festival on the scene today. Attendees describe the festival as “immersed in the greatest conscious party you have ever experienced, filled with music, yoga, dancing, love, light, and heart-centered community.”

Tickets for Bhakti Fest 2023 are available here. The non-profit festival donates a percentage of its funds to charities and other nonprofit groups that provide food, education, and environmental beautification programs worldwide. These include Food for Life Vrindavan, Love Serve Remember Foundation, Ramana’s Garden, Share Your Care, and the Seva Foundation.

Bhakti Fest Welcomes Thousands Home for a Transformational Event September 15-17 in Joshua Tree, California

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Joshua Tree, CA – February 15, 2023 – Bhakti Fest, Southern California’s popular yoga and kirtan festival will return to the beautiful Joshua Lake & Campground on September 15-17, 2023.

This pioneering gathering, known for non-stop yoga, kirtan, meditation, sound baths, vegetarian cuisine, healing bodywork, spiritual study, conscious community, and transformation, continues to serve as a beacon for spiritual seekers from around the world. After a COVID-driven break since 2019, the festival is excited to welcome its fans home.

Festival producer Bella Silberfein notes, “while we’ve been doing smaller retreat-style events during the pandemic as a way for yogis to deepen their practice and will continue with those as they are very popular, we are thrilled to be back with a full festival in Joshua Tree in 2023. We look forward to bringing our entire Bhakti family together for another amazing weekend of sun, music, wisdom, and yoga.”

The festival returns with all-star yoga instructors, including Yogrishi Vishvketu, Shiva Rea, Kia Miller, Andrew Sealy, Raghunath, Sujala Roy, Tommy Rosen, Govind Das & Jacqueline Michelle, Harpinder Kaur Mann, MC Yogi & Amanda Giacomini, and local favorite, Urban Yoga’s Kristin Olson. From those who have never stepped foot on a yoga mat to those who don’t travel without one, all student levels are welcome and encouraged to attend.

A curator of sacred sound, Bhakti Fest will host non-stop Kirtan and chant across various musical genres, including blues, rock, pop, gospel, traditional, and hip-hop. Headliners include Grammy nominees Pato Banton, and Krishna Das, and MC YOGI. This year’s musicians include favorites such as Ayla Nereo, Desert Dwellers, Snow Raven, Sol Rising, Kirtaniyas, Satsang, DJ Drez & Marti Nikko, David Starfire, Raghunath, Govind Das & Jacqueline, Amritakripa, Nina Rao, Radhika Das, Gina Sala, and many more.

Bhakti Fest provides participants with the unique opportunity to interact and learn from some of the greatest luminaries of our time. Speakers include Radhanath Swami, Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswatiji, Jai Devi Singh, Krishna Das, Nidhi Pandya, Michael Brian Baker, Nina Rao, Snow Raven, Reginald Hubbard, Marti Nikko, Tommy Rosen, Zoe Kors, Raghunath, and Jacqueline Michelle. As always, Bhakti Fest will screen digital Satsang with the legendary, dearly departed Ram Dass, whose book Be Here Now helped bring Eastern philosophy west in the 1970s.

No family festival is complete without a Kids’ Village! In the cool shade, fun, physical, creative, musical, and conscious activities provide an opportunity to enjoy time together.

Bhaktis will feast on various raw, vegan, and vegetarian food and beverage options. There is an extensive marketplace with eco-friendly, sustainable vendors offering clothing, devotional art, musical instruments, CDs, crafts, jewelry, and more. Bhakti Fest’s own Bhakti Shoppe will feature highly sought-after items from the bazaars of India.

Accommodations onsite include glamping, camping, and RV parking. There are also several hotels within a few miles of the campground that offer discounts for attendees.

With a world-class lineup of musicians and yoga instructors, conscious workshops, and artisan vendors, Bhakti Fest offers the most heart-opening, consciousness-raising experience of any festival on the scene today. Attendees describe the festival as “immersed in the greatest conscious party you have ever experienced, filled with music, yoga, dancing, love, light, and heart-centered community.”

Tickets for Bhakti Fest 2023 are available here. The non-profit festival donates a percentage of its funds to charities and other nonprofit groups that provide food, education, and environmental beautification programs worldwide. These include Food for Life Vrindavan, Love Serve Remember Foundation, Ramana’s Garden, Share Your Care, and the Seva Foundation.

World Devotional Music Visionary Jai Uttal Walks in the Footsteps of the Ancients with New Album Dust & Tears

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While love and spirituality are still the topics, the album moves away from Hindu chants to a more universal direction


Jai Uttal’s new album, Dust & Tears, is a gem. It is essential Jai but in a new dimension, as beautiful as his many other works, but more available to the (my) western ear. On Dust & Tears prayers are veiled, but ever present. “Psalm” is a spiritual and musical blockbuster of melody, arrangements, vocal, and chorus. I’m happy putting the entire album on repeat, which is exactly where it is while I write this.
– Joan Baez

Fairfax, CA – Grammy-nominated world and spiritual music legend Jai Uttal will release his 22nd album Dust & Tears tomorrow on all platforms, linked from https://ffm.to/dust-and-tears. The album is a departure in that it’s mostly English lyrics, as opposed to the call & response Kirtan chants of much of his previous work.

Dust and Tears is one of the most introspective, profoundly personal albums in the vast catalog of the beloved world and devotional musical innovator Jai Uttal. It is also one of his most boldly adventurous recordings—an inspired synthesis of divine poetry and song from across the ages and around the globe. The musical palette is relatively spare but nonetheless sparkling and spellbinding—weaving together myriad world music flavors to create a wondrous, warm tapestry of devotion and love.

Over the course of nine pristine tracks—gorgeously recorded, as always, by Ben Leinbach—Jai invokes and honors the great singer-saints of India’s Bhakti tradition, the beauty of Old Testament palmistry and the heartfelt songs of America’s wandering, folk-singing storytellers.

In creating Dust and Tears, Jai collaborated closely with his wife of many years, the yoga teacher, dancer, and author Nubia Teixeira. She suggested the idea of transmuting ancient mystical songs into the language and music of our own time and contributed substantially to the album’s richly poetic lyrics. “The reality is that Nubia wrote well over 50 percent of these words,” Jai notes. “Sometimes it was a little bit more me; other times it was a little more her. And sometimes, it was both of us. What a fabulous gift to collaborate with my wife in this way.”

Jai’s 17-year-old son Ezra Uttal also played a key role as the album’s keyboardist, creating sublimely layered orchestrations and earthy synth solos.

Along with these family members and Leinbach (who played bass and percussion as well as co-producing the album), Jai assembled a small but gifted coterie of his frequent musical collaborators, including trombonist Jeff Cressman, accordionist Sunniva Brynnel, percussionists Visvambhar and Vrinda Sheth, and backing vocalists Sandy Cressman, Prajna Vieira, Natalie Cressman, Sandy Griffith, Lakshmi DelSanto and Lucía Lilikoi.

A few more musical guests lent their colors, but the production remained intimate, leaving ample space for each individual talent to shine, not least of all Jai. His vocal performance on Dust and Tears hits new heights of ecstatic bliss and plumbs new depths of despair and longing—the voice of a prophet, crying forlornly in the wilderness yet lovingly swaddled in layers of angelic harmony.

“In my kirtan, mantra, and prayer singing over the years, I’ve felt deeply connected with the men and women of the ancient past,” Jai says. “People who invested their hearts and souls in these words—these mantras—and who connect with us today, and lend us their shakti, their hearts, their emotions, and the power of their prayers, to increase the power and potency of our prayers.”

Jai will be doing his annual Valentine’s event at Berkeley’s Freight & Salvage on Saturday, February 11. Tickets are $15-$30 and are available at https://secure.thefreight.org/12070/jai-uttal.

Jai Uttal Returns to Marin Center for A Solo Acoustic Concert December 17

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San Rafael, CA – November 29, 2022 – Grammy nominated spiritual music pioneer Jai Uttal will perform an acoustic solo concert at The Showcase Theater at Marin Center, 10 Avenue of the Flags in San Rafael, CA 94901, at 7pm on Saturday, December 17.

Stepping into a new and deeper level of vulnerability, Grammy nominee and World Music pioneer Jai Uttal presents an intimate solo acoustic performance of inspiring songs and devotional chants. Jai will accompany himself on a variety of instruments and create a space of invocation, prayer, and heartfelt expression. Join Jai and the Bay Area Kirtan community for this meditative and heart opening event during this special holy season of love. Tickets are $30-$59 in advance here.

Jai Uttal is a Grammy nominated sacred music composer, recording artist (22 albums to date!), multi-instrumentalist, and ecstatic vocalist, combining influences from India with elements from American rock and jazz, along with Jamaican reggae, Brazilian samba, and more, to create a stimulating and exotic multi-cultural fusion that is truly world spirit music.

Having travelled extensively in India, where he met many great saints and singers, Bhakti Yoga became his personal path. Jai has been performing and teaching around the world for nearly 50 years, creating a safe environment for people to open their hearts and voices
Jai is a favorite performer on the yoga festival circuit, playing to thousands each summer at numerous events. He also leads his own workshops and retreats that deepen yogis’ practice of the heart-based Bhakti yoga method, Kirtan, that is chanting the names of God to further enlightenment.

With a unique boomer upbringing in the NYC music biz of the 50s and 60s (as a child he was at the session where Mitch Ryder recorded “Devil With a Blue Dress”!) Uttal understands true musicianship and has worked with top musicians including Bill Laswell, Don Cherry, and his musical guru Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, throughout his career.

Additionally, his story flows with that of his generation – in the 70s he studied with Khan in the Bay Area while making extended trips to the Indian Ashram of Neem Karoli Baba the same guru who influenced Ram Dass’ classic Be Here Now. Maharajji, as the guru is known to his students, encouraged the practice of bhakti (devotional) yoga as expressed through kirtan, the call-and-response chanting of sacred names, over and over again until they become deeply instilled in the consciousness, providing an experience of profound peace and spiritual insight.

The 80s were dedicated to his music career which took off in 1990 with his first album Footprints that featured Don Cherry and other notables, launching him into the exploding world music scene. Now, marriage, fatherhood, a Grammy nomination, and 32 years of worldwide acclaim later this acoustic solo show in Marin continues his legacy.

2020 Has Been a Surprisingly Busy Year for Revered Spiritual Artist Jai Uttal, Continuing with New Single “Time and Again” Out Tomorrow

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Fairfax, CA – Noted for his heartfelt renditions and upbeat barn burners of classic Kirtans (Sanskrit chants from ancient India), and his first instrumental album Gauri’s Lullaby, currently in consideration for a New Age Grammy, his notable summer single “Behind the Walls” inspired by his work with inmates at San Quentin, and the horrible novel coronavirus outbreak currently taking place there, as well as hosting a sold out online Kirtan camp last summer, Jai Uttal is excited to announce tomorrow’s release of his new single, “Time and Again.” The song is available in all audio formats here.

“Time and Again” is the first single release from Jai’s upcoming album, Songs of the Mystics, that will be coming out next year. “Time and Again” was composed by Jai and his wife Nubia Teixeira, based on a song of the 16th century Indian Bhakti poetess, Mirabai. Though scorned by the presiding culture of the time, Mirabai’s passionate and sensual devotion to her Lord, and her complete disregard for social mores, became a clarion call to the poor and marginalized masses. She was, indeed, a mystic revolutionary!

‘Songs of the Mystics’ will include re-imaginings of songs and poems by many of the Bhakti saints, but Jai thought it appropriate to start with Mirabai. Her message and mood are timeless and resonate even today in the hearts of all devotees. About recording this track in all the insanity that is 2020, Jai notes, “I decided to release this song now because it seems that at this moment in history, more than ever, we are being called upon to act as well as to pray, each in our own way, that spirit will come and lift the mountain of chaos and division and divisiveness and pain from the world so that we can all breathe and our hearts can freely love once again.”

As with everything, the COVID-19 crisis has affected Jai’s recording process, noting that for this single, “My entire recording process has changed during this pandemic. Here in Northern California we’re still mostly in quarantine. So, this recording used pieces from various sources. The lovely background voices by the Pagan Love Choir were from a live concert I did of this song in February, which was multitracked. The accordion was recorded two years ago over a guitar demo I had at the time of the song. The rest of it was produced in Ben Leinbach‘s little studio that is now divided by huge plexiglass walls. Awkward, but we got the job done. I couldn’t let the pandemic squash creativity. Creativity is medicine!”

Besides COVID-19, the intense fires of Northern California and the social and political strife has also affected everything Jai’s life and he notes, “2020 has, indeed, been a year full of challenges, but it has also been a year of deep healing, personal growth and more intimate family interaction. It’s also been a time of deep connecting with my extended family and greater Bhakti community. I’ve been doing weekly live stream concerts and Kirtans, that have been a great point of focus for myself in terms of preparing and creating new songs and practicing my older songs, as well as bringing our extended Bhakti family and community together over Zoom. The pandemic has also pushed us to create online Kirtan Camps. These events have been greatly appreciated, and have enabled people from all over the world, who would never have been able to attend a Kirtan Camp in person, to join us The Online Camps have also helped me organize my own thoughts, experiences and music into a much more potent and accessible way of teaching. We’re in the middle of our second camp now.”

The Hindi verse, of “Time and Again,” ‘Meera Kahe Prabhu Giridhara Nagara, Hey Govinda Hey Gopala’, calls out: ‘Oh Lord of Mira, Govinda, Gopala, lifter of the mountain.’ One might paraphrase this as: ‘Oh my Beloved, please lift this insurmountable mountain of suffering and separation, that I may be yours forever!’

Jai adds, “I hope we all can taste a droplet of Mirabai’s intense, oceanic devotion.”

Revered Spiritual Artist Jai Uttal Announces New Single Inspired by his Work at San Quentin and the Coronavirus Outbreak there, “Behind the Walls”

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Fairfax, CA – Noted for his heartfelt renditions and upbeat barn burners of classic Kirtans (Sanskrit chants from ancient India), and recently his instrumental album Gauri’s Lullaby, as well as hosting a sold out online Kirtan camp, Jai Uttal is excited to announce today’s release of his new single, “Behind the Walls”. The track was inspired by his years of working with the inmates at California’s legendary penitentiary, San Quentin, and the horrible novel coronavirus outbreak currently taking place there. The song is available in all audio formats here, and on YouTube here.

While Jai first performed in prisons in the early 70s when touring with his good friend, noted spiritual leader Ram Dass, it wasn’t until more recently that he began performing at San Quentin. Working with the interfaith program, ‘Chaplain of the Heart’, Jai and a small group of musicians led semi-regular Kirtan programs in the San Quentin Chapel. These concerts began in 2011 and the response from the incarcerated men was incredibly enthusiastic. Because of the connections and friendships he made in the prison, Jai felt particularly disturbed about the disaster happening ‘Behind The Walls’.

For this release Jai is connecting with the group Re:Store Justice, and asking listeners to donate to their advocacy programs. Of Re:Store Justice he notes “they do incredible work with the prisoners while they’re inside the system as well as when they’re released. The folks who run it are completely committed to reforming the prison system from the inside out. In fact, one of the founders has been incarcerated and really knows what is needed in there. Please check them out and, if you feel so moved, please make a donation. Everyone is important, every human being deserves medical attention and care in times of deep crisis.”

The film Mantra: Sounds Into Silence featured one of Jai’s kirtan concerts in the prison. Jai notes, “the director also interviewed a bunch of the guys and it’s amazing to hear how completely transformative the Kirtan experience was for them. I also found out that on death row my CDs are the most requested by the residents of that deeply depressing wing of San Quentin Prison. I am so glad that my music can offer some solace to them.”

Jai has written an extensive artist statement about the single, he says:

“I first started singing in penitentiaries around 1973, when I was touring with Ram Dass. We would go into the prisons and I would sing and share a Kirtan as part of his presentation to the inmates. I found those experiences intense and profound. But it wasn’t until decades later that I began to go semi-regularly into San Quentin prison to sing for the inmates and share with them the practice of Kirtan, as part of an interfaith program that had been in place for some time.

Standing outside of San Quentin can be quite intimidating, with its many huge gates and high walls, but, once inside, in the sanctuary of their small chapel, with a room full of enthusiastic men, that trepidation completely disappears. Of course, it took me a while to find my way to be authentic and real with the men; to not see them as ‘other’. But once that happened, I found a community of brothers there who were so incredibly committed to their spiritual practices and to finding inner freedom within the confines of their incarceration. Their dedication and deep spiritual longing was completely inspiring to me.

So, I went again and again with a small group of musicians and, after a while, I saw that these men, who at first seemed so hard, we’re melting and smiling and singing and expressing so much emotion. In fact, many of the men got off of their seats and danced like wild Bengali Bauls. After one of the kirtans, a man came up to me and said “This is the REAL San Quentin! This is what you have to tell everyone. Nobody believes this. THIS is the REAL San Quentin. We are all brothers here.” With tears in his eyes, he referred to the prison as “The House of Healing”.

So, when I heard about the intense Covid surge inside the prison and how little the authorities we’re doing about it, I was affected very deeply, and personally concerned with the plight of some of my friends there. It’s amazing to me that what’s happening behind those walls is going unnoticed by most of the residents of Northern California. In fact, the devastation that’s occurring because of the virus in so many penitentiaries has just been a footnote in the national news. San Quentin was pretty much infection free until an incomprehensible decision by the prison board transported a bus load of men from a prison in Chino, California, to San Quentin, in Marin County, California. Many of the transportees carried the virus, some already showing severe symptoms. With almost no medical facilities or possibilities for quarantine, the virus spread like a wildfire and began to decimate the San Quentin population. This is still happening.

So I decided to write and record this song, ‘Behind The Walls’ and release it as soon as possible so people could know what’s happening in their backyard. (San Quentin is about a ten-minute drive from our home!). Thank you so much for listening to my song and reading my words. Much love, Jai”